William L. Marcy

William Learned Marcy (12 December 1786-4 July 1857) was a US Senator from New York (D) from 4 March 1831 to 3 January 1833 (succeeding Nathan Sanford and preceding Silas Wright), Governor of New York from 1 January 1833 to 31 December 1838 (succeeding Enos T. Throop and preceding William H. Seward), US Secretary of War from 6 March 1845 to 4 March 1849 (succeeding William Wilkins and preceding George W. Crawford), and Secretary of State from 7 March 1853 to 6 March 1857 (succeeding Edward Everett and preceding Lewis Cass). He was a Democratic Party member.

Biography
William Learned Marcy was born in Southbridge, Massachusetts in 1786, and he established a legal practice in Troy, New York after graduating from Brown University. He served as a captain of US Army volunteers during the War of 1812. After the war, he entered into politics as a member of the Democratic-Republican Party, and he supported the anti-DeWitt Clinton "Bucktail" faction, which was led by Martin Van Buren; he became a leading member of the Albany political machine. As the Democratic-Republicans fractured in the 1820s, Marcy became a member of the Democratic Party. From 1821 to 1831, he served as Adjutant General of New York, New York State Comptroller, and an associate justice of the New York Supreme Court. In 1831, he was elected to the US Senate, serving until his election as Governor in 1833. He served three terms in office before being defeated by William H. Seward in 1838. Marcy went on to serve as Secretary of War under James K. Polk from 1845 to 1849, overseeing the Mexican-American War. He resumed his practice of law after the Polk administration, and he affiliated himself with the conservative "Hunkers", who opposed Van Buren's liberal "Barnburners". Marcy returned to the cabinet in 1853 as Secretary of State under Franklin Pierce, and he resolved a dispute over the status of US immigrants abroad and directed US diplomats to dress as ordinary Americans instead of adoptin court dress. He also supported free trade with British Canada and the Gadsden Purchase with Mexico, acquiring more land for New Mexico and Arizona. He left office in 1857 and died that same year.